Jordan Poole was traded by the Golden State Warriors to the Washington Wizards earlier this NBA offseason in exchange for point guard Chris Paul, and now it’s becoming clear why the Dubs let Poole go.
The Warriors believed that Poole, 24, was a “extraneous” and “inefficient” player on their roster, according to Tim Kawakami of The Athletic.
“What’s clear to me after a few days of checking around is that this all began when the Warriors decided that Poole was an extraneous and inefficient member of their roster,” Kawakami wrote. “That was the precipitating issue. The Warriors wanted out of the $123 million deal they gave Poole only eight months earlier because his play last season didn’t meet that value, especially given their extreme luxury-tax pressures.”
In October 2022, Poole agreed to a four-year, $128 million agreement with the Warriors. The extension begins in the next year. This past season, the Michigan native averaged a career-high 20.4 points per game for the Dubs while shooting 43.0% from the field, 33.6% from 3-point range, and 87.0% from the charity stripe.
Poole, however, was unable to continue his good fortune from the regular season into the 2023 postseason. Poole averaged 10.3 points in 13 postseason games against the Sacramento Kings and Los Angeles Lakers while shooting an ineffective 34.1% from the field and 25.4% from 3-point range.
The Warriors, who defeated the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals in six games last year, fell to the Lakers in the Western Conference Semifinals this year. Poole averaged just 8.3 points per game in the LA series.
Before the 2022–23 season began, Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors punched Poole in the face. After the Warriors’ head coach Steve Kerr revealed the leaked video to the public, he said that the squad never fully recovered from the punch.
The Warriors are now anticipated to start Paul, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, and Green with Poole out and Paul in.
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